Lego, a word that takes us back to our childhood. A word that fills us with nostalgia for those moments when we were sitting with absolute dedication (or with our friends) and trying to build a world to travel with. The Lego made the dreams of young children (or even adults) take on flesh and blood.
Like any kind game (manufacturing, electronic or desktop) so Lego lived and still lives, a golden age in its years coronavirus.
With people spending more time at home, the pandemic has led to a boom in shopping for their favorite bricks. Virginia Hall-based collector David Hall told the New York Post that he sold a Republic Dropship “Star Wars” – which he originally bought in 2010 for $ 250 – for $ 1,250.
“Hype and nostalgia play the biggest role in how much you can earn for reselling old sets,” Hall said.
Lego like gold
In fact, Legoes are now appreciating faster than gold, stocks or bonds, according to a recent study by the Moscow Higher School of Economics.
The researchers found that between 1987 and 2015, the 2,322 Lego sets they watched were valued at 11% per annum, while their value proved resilient to stock market falls. They increased in value during the recession of 2008 as well as the pandemic.
“We are used to believing that people buy items such as jewelry, antiques or works of art as an investment,” said Dr. Victoria Dobrynskaya, Associate Professor of Economics and one of the study’s authors. “To the general public, I think the findings are surprising, because they consider Lego to be a simple game and most people are not even aware of the existence of a huge secondary market.”
Among the most valuable are the sets that no longer come out again, or those that were limited edition or regional. “You have to get the sets before they go off the shelves [του καταστήματος]”otherwise you will end up paying double, if not triple, later,” Hall said.
Below we will see four Lego collectors who have made smart investments with estimates stating that, if of course they want it, by the age of 30 they can get a lot out of their collections.
The YouTube superstar
David Hall, 24, has made a career out of his Lego collection. The freelance videographer is also a full-time influencer and Lego ambassador through the Solid Brix Studios YouTube channel.
“Just like any other child, my parents bought me a Lego set and I just stuck with them,” Hall said. At the age of 11, in 2008, he started presenting his sets on YouTube and his channel took off, earning advertising revenue from 433,000 subscribers and almost 150,000,000 total views.
Hall stores his collection in the basement of his home in Richmond, Virginia, where he shares it with his fiancée. More than 1,000 sets, some in their original packaging and others assembled, from a “Lord of the Rings: The Battle of Helm’s Deep” set (purchased for $ 130 and currently worth $ 410) to a “Star Wars: Republic Gunship” which bought for $ 120 and now worth $ 545, has filled the entire 37-square-foot space. And now it extends to a storage unit for sealed sets.
Hall is not sure how much his entire collection is worth, but last year he invested $ 10,000 to $ 20,000 in the collection: “I have stock investments, but I would say I put a lot more money into Lego sets.”
The Harry Potter fan who treasures
While Holly, a 22-year-old from Sydney, Australia, is graduating with a degree in web design, she also maintains a YouTube channel – and, with more than 36,000 subscribers, is considered one of the first female Lego influencers and a prominent member of the collectors community.
It all started when her grandparents bought her a Lego Harry Potter castle for Christmas 2007. “I’m just addicted,” she said. “I really enjoyed sorting things out and rebuilding them.” Since then, her collection has grown to include nearly 500 sets, for which she has spent more than $ 14,000 – and is estimated to be worth about $ 20,000. She said the castle she received as a gift from her grandparents is valued at $ 700 today, while a Diagon Alley from 2011 can hold almost $ 1,000.
Lego – both built and in their packaging – are everywhere in the house where she lives with her parents and younger sister: In the attic, on the shelves, under her bed, in her closet. “It’s a bit disorganized chaos.”
She hopes to use her platform to inspire more girls to pursue her hobby. “I remember being ashamed as a child if I was caught carrying a Lego bag,” he said. “I really hope I can inspire other girls to be comfortable with themselves and realize that they have to be proud of their passion.”
The set with the seven-digit value
“I have been involved with Lego for many years. “It was always a good time to get over my stress and it’s a creative way out of my early years,” said Christopher Lee, a 21-year-old who has a dual degree in electrical engineering and business administration from the University of Pennsylvania. “I have always loved making or creating things, something that extends to what I am studying now.”
Over the years, Lee has amassed 6,514 sets, which are kept in the basement of his parents’ house in Seattle. In fact, Lego has become a family affair: “It’s a great activity for me and my dad. We like to make the sets together “.
Because much of his collection is gifts dating back to his childhood, the young man is not sure how much he has spent on it over the years, but estimates that the total retail value of his collection is at least seven digits.
Among the most sought-after pieces is an authentic Lego Cloud City set from the 2003 “Star Wars” series, worth $ 2,000. He said original, defective and promotional items could fetch higher prices, such as the $ 900 Bionicle Wrong Mask and a rare, 2015 Lego Tour Mask of Water, which came out only as a promo material and could to reach $ 2,000.
As soon as he graduates next May, he plans to take his collection home – and continue his YouTube channel, with more than 22,000 subscribers. “I do not collect Lego for the purpose of investing,” Lee said.
From a degree in data science, Lego influencer and collector
When Emily Texan graduated with a master’s degree in data science in 2020, she faced a rather stressful job market. So she decided to take a huge step in another direction and dedicate herself, full time, to a YouTube channel in which she shares her Lego collection and her love of bricks with her more than 25,000 subscribers.
“I never had a Lego growing up, but my husband picked it up and gave me my first set,” YouTuber said. Inspired by her scientific background, her husband bought her a set of Women of NASA that sparked her passion for bricks.
Now, Lego is a hobby that they share as a couple. “It’s something that helped us get through the pandemic,” Emily said. “It’s a great hobby to enjoy together.”
The duo is showing more than a thousand sets in two rooms of their house and has started to occupy a third. A “Star Wars: Ultimate Collector Millennium Falcon” ($ 800 that Emily expects to be valued at a higher price once production stops) and modular sets – more intricate constructions, with over 2,000 bricks each, that make up the elements of a city, are their most valuable. Emily’s Modular Grand Emporium, a non-functioning mall, is worth about $ 425.
“People are shocked to hear that what they consider toys is worth so much money,” he said.
Source: News Beast
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